Surgical instrument.



LA FAYETTE GRACEY. SURGICAL msmumsm.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 16, I915.

Patented Feb. 27, 1917.

rr s l I SURGICAL INSTRUMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 27, 1917.

Application filed January 16; 1915. Serial No. 2,622.

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, LA FAYETTE GRAonY, a citizen of the United States, residing at J onesboro, in the county of Craighead and State of Arkansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Surgical Instruments; and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, suchas will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in surgical instruments of the type used in the examination of and operation upon the female pelvic region.

The primary object of my invention is to simplify the construction and operation of such devices by constructing an instrument which includes relatively movable organ expanding blades arranged to automatically lock in adjusted position when pressure is placed thereon.

In the construction of devices of the above mentioned character it is customary to provide' a relatively straight rack bar for adjustably supporting a movable or adjustable blade and in this type it is necessary to effeet a locking of the blade after it is adjusted to hold it in adjusted position and furthermore the space between the distal ends of the blades is not sufliciently great in comparison to the space at the proximal or entrance end thereof to permit a thorough examination or proper access to the organ to be treated. In constructing my instrument I provide an arcuate or segmental rack bar which has adjustably mounted thereon, a movable blade, said bar and blade being so arranged that when the blade is in adjusted position and has pressure placed thereon it will bind with the bar and lock itself in adjusted position. Furthermore, the arcuate rack bar is extended in such a plane that the blades provide a greater space at their distal ends than at the proximal ends thereof.

Another object is to generally improve instruments of the character described so as to render them more practical, easier to operate and effective without increasing the cost of manufacture thereof.

The above and additional objects are accomplished by such means as are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, described in the following specification and then more particularly pointed-out in the claim.

Fig.2 is an enlarged sectional view show- A ing the blades expanded or adjusted, and

Fig. 3 is a detail fragmentary sectional view showing the manner of connecting the adjustable blade with the rack bar,

Referring to the drawings by characters H of reference, 1 designates as an entirety an elongated relatively stationary blade that is provided with a rounded distal end 2 'and is substantially concavo-convex, the

An integral I upper face being concaved. downwardly-and outwardly inclined arm 3 is carried at the proximal end of the blade 1 on one side of said blade and terminates in an upwardly extending arcuate or segmental rack bar 4. that is also disposed to one side of the longitudinal center of the blade and in alinement with the arm 3. This arcuate rack bar l extends upwardly and outwardly relative to the proximal end of the blade 1 and is formed on one side face with corrugations 5. I

I provide a relatively shorter concavoconvex adjustable blade 6 that is provided with a rounded distal end? and has its convex face disposed uppermost. The proximal end of the blade 6 is curved outwardly and upwardly as at 8 so that said blade conforms to the contour of the body adjaeent to the pelvic region thereof. An elongated opening 9 is also formed in the upper face of the plate 7 so as to permit inspection and insure against discomfort of the urinary organ at the upper part of the vagina. Extending outwardly from one side of the outturned portion 8 of the blade 6 is an arm 10 which carries at its outer end an adjusting sleeve 11 which is slidably mounted 011 the rack bar 4 and 'disposed at one side of said arm Or Ofi SQt relative thereto so that the proximal end of the blade 6 is free of obstruction.

I provide a thumb adjusting member 12 that is rotatably mounted in an opening in and meshes with the corrugated or toothed face 5 of the bar 4.

In use, the blades when closed, as shown in Fig. 1 are inserted in the ordinary manner and the blade 6 is adjusted to expand the vagina to the desired degree. This adjustment is effected by rotating the thumb adjusting member 12 and causing the ratchet wheel 12 to rotate correspondingly. When pressure is brought to bear upon the distal end of the blade 6,, the collar or sleeve 11 binds with the rack bar 4L and is thus locked or prevented slipping relative thereto. t will be readily seen that an automatic locking action is had after the device has been expanded or adjusted and pressure brought to bear upon the blade 6. This point is considered one of the most essential of my invention. It will be seen that the space between the distal ends of the blade is greater in proportion to the space between the proximal ends; thus effective access to the organ to be operated upon, treated or inspected may be had.

In practice, I have found that the form of my invention, illustrated in the drawings and referred to in the above description, as the preferred embodiment, is the most efficient and practical; yet realizing that the conditions concurrent with the adoption of my device will necessarily vary, I desire to emphasize the fact that various minor changes in details of construction, proportion and arrangement of parts may be resorted to, when required, without sacrificing any of the advantages of my invention, as claimed.

What is claimed is A surgical instrument comprising an elongated relatively stationary concavo convex blade, a downwardly and outwardly inclined arm formed integrally with the proximal end on one side of said blade, said arm having its end bent upwardly to form an arcuate rack bar which is located to one side of the longitudinal center of said blade, a relatively short adjusting concavo-conrex blade having its proximal end curved outwardly' and upwardly, said blade provided with an elongated opening to permit the positioning of said blades in position, an arm formed integrally with the proximal end of said blade and disposed at one side thereof, an adjusting sleeve formed integrally with the'outer end of said arm and slidably mounted on the rack bar of said stationary blade, and an adjusting member rotatably mounted through said sleeve, a tooth wheel formed on the inner end of said adjusting member and located in said sleeve, said tooth wheel engaging said rack bar to permit the expanding of said adjustable blade with relation to said stationary blade, said adjustable blade adapted to force itssleeve into engagement with the rack bar of the stationary blade when pressure is applied thereto, thus holding the blades in their adjusted expanded position.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

LA FAYETTE GRACE Y.

Witnesses M. O. Roenns, J. ELINCKER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

